Текст книги "Sweet Reckoning"

Автор книги: Wendy Higgins

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“I heard you don’t even like Neph girls,” I countered.

He laughed, swishing hair from his eyes with a flick of his head and stepping forward again. “I don’t. But I’m willing to make sacrifices for the greater evil.”

I swallowed hard. He was convincing. Too convincing.

He’s just putting on a show, I told myself.

“So, what are you saying?” I asked. “The Dukes don’t think I’m working? Is that why they’re sending every Neph to question me and fight me?”

His pause at my mention of other Neph was minuscule, but I knew him well enough to catch it.

“Just covering all the bases. They know you’re pushing alcohol, but you weren’t exactly a well-rounded worker at that summit, yeah?”

“That was a year and a half ago,” I ground out. “I’m very well-rounded now.”

“Prove it.”

His mouth hit mine with a wave of warm, citrusy pheromones and his body pressed me to the wall. I’d forgotten about my shoulder blade until a dull crest of pain coursed through me, and I whimpered. I felt him hesitate, as if he might stop to ask what was wrong, but then he kept going.

I wanted to sink into the touch of him, but a disgusting gurgling purr sounded in my brain from the whisperer, who was watching way too closely. Kaidan broke from the kiss long enough to glare at the spirit.

“Bit of a turnoff when you do that,” he told it. “Mind shutting up?” The whisperer snarled, and Kaidan was kissing me again—hard, firm kisses.

This was nothing like the making out we’d done at his apartment in L.A. He was all physical business now—nothing more. I trusted him, but my feelings wavered as clothes began to shed. He took his shirt off in one swift move. When he reached for my shirt, I wanted so badly to stop him because I wasn’t wearing a bra. I forced myself not to protest or cover myself as he unceremoniously yanked the top over my head and kissed my mouth again, roughly, pure lust, our bare chests touching.

The desperate, self-conscious part of me wondered what he thought of my body. It was strange not to have him taking time to savor me like I knew he could. Like I knew he enjoyed.

At that moment I imagined I could smell the rancid breath of the whisperer in our space, making me bitter and nervous. We had to get that thing away from us.

Kaidan’s mouth found the curve where my shoulder met my neck, and I felt his warm hands dip fully into the back of my pajama bottoms, his hands cupping my butt, pushing my underwear down my thighs.

My heart rate tripled. How far was he going to let this go?

“Take them off,” he said.

For the first time I hesitated and wanted to cry. I’d always wondered if I’d be naked with Kaidan someday, but never under these circumstances. Unleashing my emotions, I snapped, “You don’t have to be such an ass.”

His brief laugh was a dark sound as he pushed me onto the bed, grasping my bottoms and pulling them down my legs, tossing them away and leaving me bare. His whole body tensed as his eyes landed on the faded, greenish bruises across my shins. A quick survey of my skin showed I had bruises everywhere. Kaidan recovered quickly, his jaw set in hard lines.

He kept his eyes on my knees or stomach after that. The red badge at his sternum was as large as I’d ever seen it, spinning and pulsing. I wished for one soft glance from Kai—one glimpse of the boy who loved me. When his gaze finally met mine for the briefest second, it was all heat and anger.

I pressed my knees together, shocked that I lay naked in front of Kaidan Rowe and he seemed not to care. He stood at the end of the bed, unclasping his belt, which made his cargo shorts droop low on his hips. I had to swallow as he unzipped them.

This isn’t happening. I took a cue from his playbook and appeared slightly uninterested, keeping my eyes on his chest as his shorts dropped to the floor. Don’t look, Anna, I told myself.

Kaidan Rowe was nude, in all his glory, and I had to pretend to be unfazed. I couldn’t be caught gawking as if it was something I’d never seen. Which I hadn’t, and didn’t want to now. Not like this.

He won’t do it, I told myself. He won’t. Not like this. He loves you.

This was exactly the position Kaidan and I swore to never let ourselves get in. Naked. Together. I had no doubt in my mind that his father had sent him and the spirit. The consequence of refusing his father’s will would be death. Was I willing to go all the way in this moment to save him? Even if it meant I couldn’t wield the Sword of Righteousness—the only weapon that would help us get rid of the demons? Kaidan or the world. What kind of choice was that?

Please, please, please, I begged. Get us out of this.

Kaidan came toward me. When the whisperer made that gross, guttural purring sound again, I scrunched my nose. Panic and frustration made me speak out.

“Do you have to be here?” I asked it. “You’re really distracting.”

Shut up, it said to me. As if I want to be here with you boring Neph.

“Then leave,” Kaidan said. “We’re almost finished here. Anyway, I think you’d find room 108 far more interesting.”

This seemed to catch the spirit’s interest, and for the first time since Kai and the whisperer entered, I felt a spike of hope. The demon froze and then bobbed up and down.

You won’t tell? it asked.

“Tell what?” Kaidan said with impatience. “You did what you bloody came to do—you saw me find the girl and assure she’s impure. Your job is done, and I can finish mine much better if you’re not hovering.”

The spirit pondered this a few seconds before it turned with a swish and flew through the walls, disappearing.

I was afraid to breathe. We stared at the blank wall in silence for a full minute before Kaidan collapsed on the bed next to me, shoving his face into a pillow and hollering. I climbed beneath the blanket and tossed a pillow over his chiseled, naked butt.

My heart was beating too fast, and the thoughts in my head were too murky to decipher. When Kaidan reached an arm over and pulled himself closer, burying his face in the blanket at my lap, I was afraid to touch him.

“I would have stopped, Anna.” His voice was a thick whisper, causing tears to streak down each of my cheeks. “I swear. I’d die before I took you against your will. Please tell me you believe me.”

“I believe you.” And I did, but it had still been a scary, desperate moment that left me trembling. I was furious with the Dukes for putting us through this. What if we hadn’t been able to talk the whisperer into leaving? Things were going too far. Something would have to give. And soon.

I swiped the tears from my cheeks and pushed my fingers into his hair, knowing full well the whisperer could return at any moment. We couldn’t keep touching like this.

“Get under the covers with me,” I said. “We need to lie here for a little while in case it comes back.”

Kaidan looked up at me, showing all the emotion he’d so expertly kept hidden in the presence of the spirit. His expression made everything inside me come to life.

“There you are,” I whispered, stroking his cheek until I was awarded with a tired, small grin.

He sat up, shifting the pillow over his lap until he was under the blanket. We lay side by side, quiet, both our chests rising and falling too fast. Kaidan trembled before seeming to suddenly remember something. He shot up and took my arm, running a hand over the bruises.

“Anna . . .” Here we go. “What. The bloody hell. Happened? Who did this to you?”

I swallowed hard. “Listen, Kai. I’m all right now, okay?”

“Who?”

His breathing became faster, a raging storm brewing.

“The sons of Thamuz.”

His mouth went slack. “What did they do? I swear to God—”

“Nothing. They tried to take me, but I fought. And . . . Kope showed up.”

“Kope?”

“Yeah.” Kaidan was not going to like this story. I braced myself, and told him everything. He looked ready to blow a fuse.

“You should have called me,” he said.

“I thought you were in L.A. There wasn’t much time, and I didn’t want you to be worried. I was going to tell you everything afterward.”

He rubbed his face. “I can’t . . . I just . . . Anna, swear you’ll never engage another Neph like that. You’re bloody lucky Kope showed! God, what would I do? Look at you!”

He pushed my hair aside and cursed at the sight of my shoulder and back.

“I’d no clue you were injured,” he whispered. “I was too rough. . . .”

“I’m okay. I swear. You had to be rough. It was more convincing that way.”

“I’ll kill them.”

“Sh.” I pulled Kaidan back down to lie next to me and watched him breathe as he worked through his anger.

After ten minutes I said, “We can probably get up now, right? I think that’s long enough to get the job done.”

My words pulled him from his dark thoughts enough to make him chuckle. “Ah, luv, I’d certainly hope not.”

It was a relief to hear him joking. We sat up, and just as I was about to ask if he thought the spirit would come back, he turned and kissed me for real, cupping my face. I gripped his shoulders, gasping at the feel of our bare chests meeting as our passion urged us closer. I forced myself to pull back.

“Oh, God,” he said. “Clothes. Now.”

“You first,” I said.

“Look away,” he advised. “Unless you want an eyeful.”

I turned my head, partly out of embarrassment and partly because if I let my curiosity get the best of me and he caught me staring, he might attack. And I might let him.

My head snapped up when I heard Kaidan curse, and I found him standing there shirtless, facing the same hovering spirit that had left us ten minutes earlier.

“Yes, I’m obviously done,” Kaidan said to it, sounding bored.

The spirit turned toward me, and even though my chest was covered by the blanket, I wanted to pull it up higher. I didn’t dare move.

The spirit must have said something else telepathically to Kai, because he responded in a snide tone, “You do that.”

When the spirit flew away, Kaidan let out a breath and said in a low voice, “He’s gone to tell Pharzuph.”

I swallowed a dry lump and nodded. Kai bent to pick up my discarded clothes and tossed them to me before disappearing into the bathroom.

The whole time I dressed, a question continued churning inside me: Kaidan or the world? I’d been spared making that choice today, but it seemed inevitable that I’d have to eventually. Could I do the right thing if it meant Kaidan would lose his life? Tears threatened to fall again, but I fought them back, putting on a strong face and closing my eyes.

Please, God. Don’t make me choose.

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

..................................................................

CHAPTER TEN

WORRIES APLENTY

We opted to stay in the hotel room awhile longer now that the whisper was gone, but we knew we’d have to leave soon.

Kaidan stretched out on his back and looked longingly at my lap, which was at the perfect level to lay his head. I would have loved to run my fingers through his hair again, but didn’t want to take any chances. Having him there with me felt unreal. I expected him to be snatched away at any moment. I never fully relaxed, always tense and waiting for a dark spirit or enemy Neph.

“What happens now?” I asked.

“I have to go back to L.A.” His voice mirrored my sadness. “But I don’t want to leave you.”

“You must be tired.”

He pulled my hand under the covers and twined our fingers together. “I’ll sleep on the plane.”

I needed to be strong, but after experiencing how easily two Neph could overpower me, the thought of being alone was more frightening than ever.

“I haven’t heard from my dad,” I said. “I’m starting to worry. He’s gone a long time without calling before, but never when things were this serious.”

Kaidan sighed, sitting up and facing me, never letting go of my hand.

“I have news about that. They’re trying to get him kicked off earth.”

My stomach sank.

“Father flew me to Atlanta yesterday morning. He said you and Belial are suspected traitors, and that there were Neph and whisperers tracking you. I was sent with that bloody demon to confirm your lack of purity. I imagine they’ve got other trackers on your father, giving him hell.”

I rubbed my forehead, the twinge of a headache coming on. I felt like Kaidan was giving me the abridged version by the way he stared off in thought.

“What else did he say to you?” I asked. I studied his serious face.

He hesitated.

“Tell me.”

“There was nothing more about your father.”

He was staring at my hands, not meeting my eyes. I scooted closer and forced my face into his line of sight.

“I don’t want any secrets between us.”

“It’s not a secret, Anna. Just something not worth upsetting you about.”

I crossed my arms and sat up straight. He took in my stern face. If there was anything I couldn’t stand, it was being left in the dark, and he knew it.

He shook his head, eyes staring at the ceiling as if exasperated.

“Let’s just say my father expects you to have no trace of purity left after our meeting today.”

I had expected that was the case when he showed, but knowing what it meant, made me tremble. The prophecy called for a Neph who was pure of heart. Kaidan’s father had sent him to be sure I would never be able to fulfill the prophecy. So when the truth came out, someday, that I was still pure of heart, still able to fight the Dukes and send them back to hell, Kaidan would be to blame. And just like with Flynn, they wouldn’t hesitate to kill him.

I couldn’t breathe. I had to stand up. I paced in front of the bed.

“Anna . . .”

“Pharzuph will kill you as soon as he gets a whiff of me, won’t he?”

“You’ll be dead on the spot were his words,” Kaidan deadpanned.

I stopped and leaned my palms on the desk, letting my head hang.

Kaidan came up behind me, kneading my shoulders with his warm hands.

“It doesn’t matter,” he said gently. “You won’t see him again anytime soon, luv. Not until it’s time to fulfill the prophecy, and by then it won’t matter.”

I turned to face him. “But what if I do see him? He’ll go after you right away. They’re not taking any chances this time, Kai.”

I felt caught in an invisible net. Kaidan’s life was linked to my ability to use the sword. We were all intricately involved, like it or not.

“So much has happened,” I whispered.

“Tell me everything.”

I told him about Marek and Caterina being sent, and the constant barrage of whisperers. So much had happened in the few days since we’d spoken. Worst of all was Marna—my eyes burned when I thought about her.

Kaidan had no idea.

I wrapped my arms around his waist and pressed my face to his chest. His arms went around me as well.

“I need to tell you something,” I whispered.

I felt the muscles under my hands and cheek tense. I held him tighter.

“Say it.”

My phone rang, startling me, and I yanked myself away from Kaidan to grab it.

“Marna,” I whispered. What timing.

Kaidan and I stood there, watching each other. I knew he’d be using his heightened hearing to listen.

“Hey,” I said.

“Oh, Anna.” She sounded like she’d been crying. “She’s still not back and she won’t answer her phone. It’s been over a day, and I’m too scared to wait any longer. I’m going to her.”

Kai stepped closer, his eyebrows tightly knit with concern and confusion.

I thought about Dad and what he’d done when our ally Zania was in trouble. Her own father, Duke Sonellion, had given up on her because of her alcoholic ways, and he left her to be beaten and sold into slavery somewhere in the Middle East. But Dad sent a group to help bail her out. Of course, her rescue had led to the eventual death of one of them. . . .

“Are there any Dukes in California?” I asked. “Blake’s dad?”

Kai shook his head just as Marna said, “No. It was on the news. He died last night and left his fortune to his only son.”

I shivered. Blake’s dad, Duke Melchom, was most likely spiriting his way around China, his new duty station, looking for a new body to possess.

“All the Dukes should be back in their respective areas,” Kaidan said. “What’s going on?”

“Is that Kai? What’s he doing there?”

“Yes, it’s him. Hold on.” I looked at Kai. “Can you call Blake and see if he answers? We think Ginger’s with him.”

Now he raised both eyebrows, starting to understand, though he had no idea what had sent her running there. Kaidan turned and dialed Blake. It rang and rang, then went to voice mail.

“Ring me back straight away,” Kaidan said to the machine, then hung up and shook his head at me.

“Listen,” I said to Marna. “I’m going to meet you out there. I think it’s going to take more than just you to break the two of them apart.”

“Are you sure you want to do that?” she asked.

I was sure it was dangerous, but at this point nowhere felt safe. I couldn’t sit back and watch Blake and Ginger get themselves killed. Whisperers were bound to find them together soon, if they hadn’t already.

“I’m sure,” I said. “I’ll leave right away and call you when my flight arrives. We’ll go to Blake’s together.”

“I’m going,” Kaidan said.

I bit back a smile and said to Marna, “Make that three of us.”

We disconnected and I fired up my laptop to buy a plane ticket. Kaidan and I decided we’d drive to the Roanoke airport separately to avoid being spotted together, but it was a small airport with a minimal number of flights, so we’d have to take the same one. I remembered Dad once saying that the whisperers stayed low to earth, so I felt remotely safe at the idea of being in the skies with Kai.

“Did Gin go mad when she found out Blake’s engaged?” Kaidan asked.

I stopped shoving stuff into my bag and faced him.

“She was upset about that, but it’s not what sent her over the edge.”

“So, what did?”

It felt like a boulder was weighing down my chest. I’d been selfishly avoiding this moment. I saw the tick of nervousness in Kaidan’s jaw. It was going to break his heart to lose one of his oldest and dearest friends.

“The twins had a . . . disagreement.”

“About?”

I swallowed, barely able to get the words out. “Marna’s pregnant.”

Kai stared at me with big eyes and a slow shake of his head like he wanted to argue the possibility. And then his eyes glassed over.

“I sensed it,” I said. “And it’s Jay’s.”

“Bloody hell.” He fell back to a sitting position on the bed, raking a hand through his hair as his body tensed from the shock of the news. He searched around the room as if lost before putting his elbows on his knees and letting his face fall into his hands. I knew the helplessness he was experiencing.

For one horrified moment I thought I’d see him cry for the first time, which would have obliterated my heart, but when he looked up, his eyes were red and dry. I felt horrible bearing this news to everyone. In a way, this whole thing was my fault. If I hadn’t taken the twins to Jay’s club that night . . .

“Come here,” Kaidan said, reaching out a hand.

I took it and let him pull me to his lap. I hugged him around the neck.

“It’s not your fault.”

I choked up. “How did you know what I was thinking?”

“You have that sad, guilty look on your face, but you’re guilty of nothing. It’s better to know these things sooner rather than later.”

It was true that Jay’d been able to start preparing right away, which was good, but every other aspect was tragic. I couldn’t imagine a world without Marna’s smile. And it was horribly unfair that they’d fallen in love, only to be soon torn apart. And the baby left without its mother, just like we’d all been. I couldn’t help but feel guilty.

I wondered if Jay and Patti were in Virginia now, staying safe.

“It’s my fault they got together. I didn’t think they’d move so fast, and if I’d known she could get pregnant—”

“Sh, Anna. Those two always fancied each other, yeah? This whole thing is horrid, but you can’t stop the inevitable.”

Even in his heartbroken state over Marna, Kaidan sounded reassuring and strong. I let myself hold him while I got my emotions in check. So much was happening, and everything was at stake. We needed to get to Santa Barbara as soon as possible.

“We better go,” I whispered. I promised to tell him everything on the plane. And then we’d both have plenty to worry about.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.

—Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

..................................................................

CHAPTER ELEVEN—

GINGER AND BLAKE

A distraught Marna met us inside the Santa Barbara airport. It was the roughest I’d ever seen her look—an off-center ponytail and flats instead of heels.

We rented a sedan with the darkest windows possible and drove to Blake’s cliffside mansion. I shouldn’t have been surprised to see a news van outside of his closed gates, considering this was major local-celebrity gossip. Blake’s father, a billionaire, had just died, leaving his massive fortune to the city’s extreme-sports star, who just last week had got engaged to a gorgeous girl from a prosperous family. Speaking of Michelle . . .

“Pull the car over,” I whispered.

There wasn’t much of a shoulder, but Kai squeezed to the side and we stopped to watch. We were half a mile away, so I had to push my sights out to take in the scene clearly.

“Just what we need,” Kai mumbled.

Parked in front of the news van was a sporty red car and a beautiful, pacing blonde.

“Whoa,” I said when I focused on her aura—an ugly mix of thick forest green envy and dark swirls of gray.

“Is that her?” Marna asked.

I nodded and we eyed each other. Michelle was stuck outside, clearly not being allowed entrance, which could only mean one thing. Ginger was definitely in there, and judging by the overwhelming jealousy in Michelle’s aura, she knew it.

“Can you get us a little closer?” I asked. “I’ll try and persuade them to leave.”

Kai drove closer, stopping in the driveway of Blake’s neighbor. It always felt wrong using the power of persuasion I’d gained from my double angel parentage, but sometimes it was necessary. I honed my sights on the driver of the news van and silently repeated, “Nothing is happening here. There’s no story. Leave now….” He started looking around, nervous-like. Finally after a minute of my nudging, he started the van and drove away.

The three of us grinned. Now for Michelle. When I started chanting the words to her, she slowly walked to her car, reached for the handle, and then grabbed her temples. She let out a mournful wail and began bawling.

“It’s not working,” Kai said. “We’ve got to go in. Hope the git hasn’t changed the code.”

We drove up to the gate, and Michelle ran to the car.

“Don’t you dare roll that window down,” Marna warned me, but my finger was already on the switch. I couldn’t just ignore this brokenhearted girl.

“I know you,” Michelle said to me thickly. She still managed to be gorgeous, even in her exhausted-looking state.

“Hi, Michelle,” I said gently. “Listen, Blake’s going through a really hard time. . . . He’s sort of pushing everyone away—”

“He let a girl in!”

Crap.

“I know,” I said. “She’s an old friend, like me. We’re going to try and calm him, okay? Why don’t you go home and rest. Give him a little time to digest everything.”

The gates began to swing open, and the car inched forward.

“No!” Michelle screamed. “Something’s going on! I’m going in!”

“Go to your car,” I silently urged her with my angelic will.

She ran to her car, prepared to follow us in. When she realized the gate wasn’t going to stay open long enough, she ran back but was too late. She was left crying at the closed gate, even angrier than before.

“She’s gone mad,” Kaidan said without humor. He sped up the driveway and parked directly in front of the doors. The three of us jumped out, but the door was locked.

Kaidan banged with this fist. We waited. He banged again. “Open up, idiot! This is bloody stupid!”

After what seemed like forever, the door opened, and the three of us gaped. Blake wore only low-slung basketball shorts and the hardest expression I’d ever seen. Then his sights slipped down the long driveway to where Michelle stood holding on to the gate, bawling. His green badge grew.

“Stop that,” I said. “She’s really hurting, Blake.”

A vicious giggle sounded from behind him, and Ginger strode up wearing just Blake’s shirt, which stopped at her midthigh. Her badge was circling. The two of them appeared wild, lost to their natures of envy and cheating, and probably high on the rebellion of being together after holding back so long.

Ginger rested her elbow on Blake’s shoulder and fluffed her bedhead. Blake reached an arm around her waist.

Marna stepped up. “It’s time to go, Gin.”

Ginger kept her arm around Blake’s neck, giving her sister a stare. “You’re one to talk. I seem to recall that line not working on you. I’m quite fine where I am, thanks.”

“Like hell,” Kaidan murmured, pushing past them. Marna and I followed him into the immaculate stone-tiled foyer, and Kai slammed the door, turning on the couple. “Have whisperers seen you together?”

“Course not.” Blake sounded smug.

Marna and I let out our breaths.

“You’re bleedin’ lucky!” Kai said.

“Back off, brah.” Blake dropped his arm from Ginger to step up to Kaidan. “What, you’re the only one who can be with your girl?”

“The Dukes were at their summit when we were together. This is sheer madness!”

“Guys,” I said, moving closer. But they were too fired up.

“Why do you care?” Ginger spat at Kai.

“Because we’re this close, Gin.” Kaidan held his finger and thumb an inch apart. “This close to fulfilling the prophecy, and the two of you are likely to get yourselves killed!”

Marna’s hand went to her mouth next to me, silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

“As if you care!” Ginger yelled. “You only give a shite about yourself. You want everyone to be willing to sacrifice themselves so you can finally be with your precious Anna. Well, I’m not waiting around anymore. I’m taking what I want from this damned life while I can!”

Ginger and Kaidan were inches apart, both angry as they shouted.

“It’s about all of us, not just me and Anna!”

“Oh, right!”

Kaidan grasped her small shoulders, and when he touched her they both seemed to soften. “I don’t want you dead, Gin.”

Her eyes watered. “I’ve nothing to live for now, don’t you see? She’ll be gone. My sister is dying! And Blake will be married off to that cow. I’d rather be dead.”

Kaidan wrapped his arms around her just as she broke into choking sobs, her knees buckling.

Marna started crying, too, and I took her hand.

Kaidan held Ginger up, stroking her hair like a big brother, and I could see the understanding and concern born from sharing a childhood together.

Marna stepped to them, and Kaidan reached out, pulling her into the embrace. Blake and I made eye contact and nodded, moving together to the next room so the three of them could talk. We sat on the leather sofa. Blake leaned back, pressing his fists to his eyes.

“Damn,” he whispered. “Everything is so messed up.”

That was an understatement. I had no words. When Kai and the twins came back in, the five of us sat there in sad silence. Every moment we were together brought more danger. We all knew it, yet it was hard to force ourselves apart.

Kaidan’s phone rang, and we all froze. His tan face paled as he looked at the screen and held it out for us to see.

Pharzuph.

The four of us held our breath and listened as he answered.

“I assume you took care of the girl then?” Pharzuph asked in his silky accented English.

“Of course, Father. She wasn’t a virgin anyhow.”

“Interesting.” There was a long, expectant pause. “The spirit I sent to oversee the operation has been sent back to the pit of hell, never to return to earth. Do you know why?”

Kaidan’s eyes darted to mine. “No, Father.”

“Because he admitted he did not stay to see your mission through to the end. He says the two of you persuaded him to leave.”

“Bollocks!” Kaidan stood. “That disgusting wanker was distracting. It’s hard enough to try and bang a Neph without a spirit interfering.”

“A whisperer should hardly distract you from your task, Son.” The suspicion in Pharzuph’s voice made my blood run cold.

“You’re right, Father. But the deed was done, and the whisperer left on his own. Obviously I couldn’t force him.”

“Hm.” Another pause swelled the tension in the room. “I think I’ll pay the girl a visit myself. A lot’s riding on her lack of purity.”

Goose bumps covered me.

Kai’s jaw clenched. “Do what you must, Father, but I hate to see your valuable time wasted.”

“Good of you to care.” It was the last thing Pharzuph said before he hung up.

Kaidan let out an enraged sound and kicked the coffee table, flipping it with a giant crash.

We all stood.

“Everything’s going to be okay,” I said. “We just all need to get back to work. At this rate the prophecy’s bound to go down soon, and we can’t afford to lose anyone.”

“What about you?” Marna asked. “Where will you go?”

I looked at Kaidan, feeling the pain in his gaze. “I don’t know.”

“Well, I don’t think you should be alone,” Kaidan said.

“We’re all gonna have to be alone if we want to convince them we’re working,” Blake said.

He was right. Kaidan and I couldn’t stay together, especially after we’d come all this way to keep Blake and Ginger from doing that very thing.

Kaidan shook his head. “Anna can’t pretend to work now that my father’s searching for her. She’s got to stay hidden.”

“Well, perhaps—” Marna was cut off by her own giant gasp as a dark, ethereal form with the largest wingspan I’d seen yet, dove through the window and halted above us.

Our group instinctually recoiled as one. I fought to breathe and appear unafraid. We were caught. Ideas and excuses began tumbling through my mind, none of them feasible.

The huge spirit swooped down, his horned head looming over the group before seeing me and advancing. This demon’s face appeared as a ram, thick horns curling downward. The closer he got, the stranger I felt. I waited for fear to engulf me, but a familiar warmth filled my chest instead—the feeling of safety.

“It’s me, baby,” the spirit said.

The voice was different in my mind—not as gruff, but still deep.

“Daddy?” My voice cracked.

He moved nearer. No wonder he hadn’t called. He’d shed his body. As a spirit, his giant chest and arms were bare, and he had a strange cloth wrapped around him from his waist to his knees. His body was humanesque, and yet not. Swirly and hazy. Too graceful. I felt a sense of loss knowing I’d never see that big, scary-looking man again. I pushed away the strangeness and sadness and lifted my chin to him.